Handle



April 1941- w. J. DURING 2,240,133

HANDLE Filed March 20, 1939 INVEIITEIR' W LLIAM J DURING ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 29, 1941 UNITED "STATES ENT 2,240,133 I 2 V William J. During, Syracuse, ,1assignor to Precision Last ngs Company, Inc Syracuse, N. .Y., acorporation of New Xork Application March 20, 1939, Serial "No. 262 ;858

' ,6 Claims. (01. 292-347;)

My invention relates to improvements in han- .clles for doors or the like, and relatesmore particularly to handles of the hollow formed type having a cover plate secured to the open side thereof. While my invention is particularly applicable to and is herein described in connection with metal die-cast handles, it is to be understood that the invention is also applicable to formed hollow handles of other types, for example, handles made of pressed or stamped metal or moldled from suitableplastics.

Formerly in the manufacture of hollow .diecast handles, one side of the handle was left open to facilitate removing the finished handle from :the die. The side thus omitted-was usually the side .of the handle which would be-placed adjacent to the door or other surface on which the handle would later be mountedior use. A handle so constructed appears to be solid, but upon grasping it, the shell-like construction is revealed, and if 'a firmgras-p is required,'the edges of the handle make an uncomfortable impression on the hand. To overcome this objection, hollow handles of pressed metal with a cover. plate permanently camped in place are made to give a solid feel. Such handles, however, .lacklmany inf the advantageshereinafter described in connection with my invention.

.I employ a hollow die-cast handle and cover plate construction, which permits the .coverplate to be releasablv lo kd in p ace.-

One advantage of'my invention is that it gives a solid, suhstanti'ali el to a handle so constrncted.

7 Another advantage firmly locked in place, while at the same time the cover plateis readily removable, but only if free access can be obtained tothe side .of the handle to which the cover plate is secured.

Where it is desirable to incorporate a lock within the handle, my invention permits the :assembly of the look within the handle before the cover plate is put in place. Another advantage is that after the handle is mounted in the door, the cover plate is tamperproof and the lock mechanism cannot be removed .unless the handle is first removed from the door. Still another 7 advantage lies in the fact that if lock repairs is' that the cover plate is parent from the 'following description and the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a handle made in accordance with my invention, part of the spindle being broken away.

Figure 2 is a view of the inside of the handle taken on the line 2--2 of Figure 1, the spindle being shown in section and the remainder in plan.

l Figure 3 is a central sectionta'ken on line 3-3 of Figure 2, part being broken away.

Figure 4 is a sectionoi the handle and cover plate taken on line 4-4, Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a section of the handle and cover. plate taken on line 55,'-Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a partial perspective of the small end of the handle and of its associated portion of the cover plate, shown disassembled.

Figure 7 is a partial perspective of the approximate mid-section-of the handle and of its associated portion of the cover plate, shown dis assembled. I

Referring to the drawing, I0 is a hollow shell which maybe generally boat-shaped, as shown, and provided with suitable strengthening webs. Ahollow cylindrical stem I-l projects laterally from the underside and intermediate the ends of shell l0 and terminates in :a solid spindle 12, both the stem H and the spindle 12 being preferably formed integrally with the shell I'll. The

solid spindle 1.2 may be non-circular in crosssection and is here shown as being square, and its free end may be threaded as at I13 to engage a nut, not shown. The stem III is hollowed out to form a cylindrical bore M. "The stem is also thickened near its base into a frusto-conical portion 1:5 which in turn is provided with 2. lateral protuberance or boss I6 which extends the length of the'portion i5. A keyway 11 extending lengthwise of the bore I4, is provided in the boss 16, and terminates in an opening 18 located just beyond the boss I6.

A cylinderlock 20 of a length and diameter adapted to the bore I4 is keyed into the bore l4 and 'keyway H. The lock 20 is provided with a retractablepin 2|, which is pressed outward by a spring 22. An aperture '23 is provided near the base of the boss l6 to receive the pin 2| and thus hold the lock 20 in place. By inserting an implement into the aperture 23 from the inside of the shell 1 9, the pin 21 may be pressed "inward out of engagement with the aperture 23 and the lock 20 can then be removed for inspection, repair or replacement. Two diametrically opposed apertures 24 of a shape and size adapted to perpressed inward and holds the plate 25 in resilient contact with the shell H).

In plan, the shell H1 is tapered towards the 1 ends, as shown in Figure 2. Grooves 3| are formed adjacent the edges inside the shell I and extend for the distance to be covered from the outer end of the shell toward the stem Adjacent the stem H the grooves 3| aresquare cut as at 32, and terminate in the square shoul ders 33 (see Figures and '7). The outer ends 34 of the grooves 3| are undercut as shown more clearly in Figures 4 and 6. The depth of said grooves 3| is substantially equal to the thickness of the cover plate presently described.

A cover plate 35 of a shape and proportions adapted to fit snugly in the grooves 3| is formed of material having at least some slight degree of resiliency. In the embodiment here illustrated the cover plate 35 is made of metal. For that portion 36 of the length of cover plate 35 which is adapted to fit the undercut portions 34 of grooves 3|, the cover plate is arcuate in crosssection and the edges 3! are chamfered to fit the undercut portions 34. The inner portion 38 of the cover plate 35 is fiat in cross-section and the edges 39 are finished square to fit the square cut portions 32 of grooves 3|. The inner end of cover plate 35 is finished with square corners 40, adapted to abut against the shoulders 33.

After assembly of the lock cylinder in the handle, the cover plate 35 is placed in shell ID with its lower edges resting on the bottoms of grooves 34, as shown in the dotted lines of Figure 2. The cover plate 35 is then slid toward the outer end of shell Ill. The tapered shape of the cover plate 35 and of the shell I!) allows the chamfered edges 31 to slide into and be gripped by the undercut portions 34 within a length of travel dependent upon the taper of the sides of the shell and cover. It is obvious that a steep taper would require a shorter slide travel than a fiat taper. The inner end 38 of cover plate 35 is then sprung downward from the dotted line position shown in Figure 3 to the full line position thereof, thus making the square corners 40 engage the shoulders 33, and locking the outer chamfered edges 31 in the undercut portions 34.

To remove the cover plate, the inner end 38 must first be sprung upward to disengage the square corners 40 from the shoulders 33. Thereafter the entire cover plate 35 is slid toward the stem preferably by pushing with a suitable tool against the notch 4| provided in the small end of the cover 35, thus disengaging the chamfered edge 31 from the undercut portions 34 and permitting the removal of the cover plate 35.

The handle of the embodiment of my invention shown in the accompanying drawing is designed to be grasped at one side only of the spindle and hence a cover plate is used only for that portion which the hand will grasp.

Various modifications within the spirit of my invention will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in this art, and, therefore, although I have described herein a specific embodiment of my invention, I desire my invention to be limited only by the prior art and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination with a pre-formed hollow handle having at least one open side, of a cover plate adapted to close at least a portion of said open side of said handle, and means formed in said handle and adapted to cooperate with said cover plate for removably receiving and holding,

. and releasably locking said cover plate in place,

said means comprising a converging pair of grooves wherein said grooves are undercut for a substantial portion of their lengths adjacent their converging ends.

2. The combination with a pre-formed hollow handle having at least one open side, of a converging pair of grooves formed in said handle, said grooves being undercut for a substantial portion of their lengths adjacent their converging ends, the remaining portions of said, grooves being square cut ending in a square shoulder, and a cover plate adapted to be fitted into said grooves.

3. The combination with a pre-formed hollow handle having at least one open side, of a pair of grooves formed in said handle, said grooves being undercut for a substantial portion of their lengths adjacent one end, the remaining lengths of said grooves being square cut and terminating in a square shoulder, and a cover plate of substantially the same length as said grooves having edges formed complementary to said grooves and adapted to fit therein, whereby said complementary edges of said cover plate are slid into said undercut portion of said grooves and sprung down into said square cut portion and said square shoulders lock said cover plate into place.

4. The combination as claimed in claim 3, wherein said pair of grooves comprise a converging pair, the convergence being adjacent the ends of said grooves which are undercut.

5. The combination with a pre-formed hollow handle having' at least one open side, of a removable and replaceable cover p ate adapted to close at least a portion of said open side of said handle, and means formed in said handle and adapted to cooperate with said cover plate for removably receiving and holding and releasably locking said cover plate in place, said means comprising a converging pair of grooves, each of said grooves being provided with an overhanging lip located adjacent the converging ends of said grooves.

6. The combination with a pre-formed hollow handle having at least. one open side, of a removable and replaceable cover plate adapted to close at least a portion of said open side of said handle, and means formed in said handle comprisinga pair of converging grooves, said grooves being undercut adjacent their converging ends, said last mentioned means being adapted removably to receive and hold and releasably to lock said cover plate in place.

WILLIAM J. DURING. 

